UNDRGRND DIGS 034
JULY 18TH, 2022
5 Artists From the UNDRGRND Collection
UNDRGRND DIGS is a periodical feature showcasing artists that the UNDRGRND curators dig. We sift through the social media and NFT platforms to find the best artists waiting to be discovered. UNDRGRND believes in the artists we feature and we will purchase NFTs from each artist featured. Purchases will be airdropped to reward UNDRGRND community members.
The fast-paced nature of the NFT space makes it difficult to keep up with everything. Add in the lack of appreciation for digital artists over the past three decades and you have an impossible task of keeping up on current digital art trends while appreciating past trends. Dolby Byba’s work pays homage to the past with the use of staples from the early days of computer motion graphics; but, also self-aware to a fault and referring to themselves as a “poser” in their piece I am a poser and I don’t care, and Dolby shouldn’t care. With so much going on the bright, colorful chaos Dolby shows restraint in the style of graphics used. That balance is the key to Dolby Byba’s work and what bridges the past with the present.
What’s considered “weird” today may become normalized in time. 20 years ago it was weird to think that people could spend so much time in front of a computer only to be normalized by the rise of our online personas becoming a part of who we are. As Ozan Bilaloglu (creator of Weird Realm) grows in popularity, these weird tales, titans, portraits and combats will become normalized to the point that the NFT space will just come to accept that Ozan has always been one of the artists everyone should have collected. Perhaps recognition for Ozan’s work will come from another project: Sloth Zine. Sloth Zine, created by Ozan and Burka Bayram, is a monthly collection of comic art from too many great artists to list. Regardless, more and more will begin to take notice of Ozan Bilaloglu.
YIW’s minted her genesis piece on OBJKT on June 19th, 2022. Less than 30 days ago. UNDRGRND purchased that piece and we knew we would eventually feature their work but waited until there was more. Everyone in this space is concerned about being early to discovering an artist, that’s how you make fast money. The value long-term comes from the artist's technical skill, exploration of ideas and different mediums to try new and exciting things. YIW’s meticulous detail and use of music allow the collectors to be both early and have their investment in the art hold value long term.
Another traditional artist brings pencil and paper to the digital world of NFTs. Tulay Palaz combines wonderful shading and contours of the feminine form with perfectly placed flowers and then photographed to add a splash of color and purpose. Typically paired with a quote from Oscar Wilde we learn the deeper meaning behind each piece. In The Light Inside, we’re given the statuesque head of a woman, melting like a candle, with a flower inside the woman’s head acting as the flame. The Wilde quote chosen, “Every woman is a rebel," suggests that simply by thinking, their ideas like fire, a woman is a rebel against a patriarchal society. And as women have been treated as such in the past (and present) makes Tulay Palaz’s work both timeless and timely.
COMMUNITY DIGS: N0maden
UNDRGRND community members we refer to as “diggers”, nominate their favorite undiscovered artists to be featured in weekly DIGS. UNDRGRND empowers its community to dig for bold, innovative, under valued NFT artists.
One of the easiest ways to discern art of substance for purchase is to compare it with others that have been doing it longer. N0maden’s photography could easily be placed on the cover of National Geographic without question. The photos composition and subjects are marvelous. Digital photographers may have a harder time gaining traction or finding collectors in the NFT space for a variety of reasons. One being pricing of the photos as some photographers have found success in their real lives and able to subsist of side jobs and wait until the right collector finds them, rather than price it low to entice collectors. The other may be due to the ease of access (thanks to phones) to cameras, filters and quick edit tools that many of us feel we could easily capture the same images if we simply just tried. However, N0mad’s photography shows signs of an artist who has spent years perfecting their craft with a discerning eye and so underpriced that any collector should be quick to purchase work of this talented photographer.
